Echoes of a Ghost
by Disciple of Ember
Summary: Her first life had been taken from her. Her second, left in the ruins of her failed mission. Now she was alone, and all that mattered was pushing towards a goal she could no longer see.


**And, in my tradition of being late to the party, here's a Darker than Black story that has been bugging me since watching the show. Mai's fate has been something I've been very unsure of after completing the first season, since it never confirms whether she lives or dies (her appearance in Hei's vision implies the latter, but there were also three other Contractors there that were more or less alive, so... yeah) so I figured I'd work under the assumption that she didn't drop off after what happened in the Saturn Ring. Just a minor drabble really.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Darker than Black or any of the characters associated with it.**

* * *

The rain fell down on the silent remains of what had been a battlefield not long ago, washing away the blood spilled with a steady mist of clouded droplets, as though the weeping sky was unable to bear the sight of all the death any longer. In the downpour, one lone person could be seen slowly pushing forwards.

 _She was alone._

Mai had failed. The Saturn Ring was destroyed. The one who'd ruined her charge had paid dearly, burned alive by her flames, but that hardly mattered now. His companion, the ill-clad woman, had vanished, and Mai had been too stricken by their preemptive attack to do anything but collapse after that.

It was almost as if they'd known she was waiting for them somehow.

By the time she'd awoken, the body of the man was gone. Likely taken back either by his allies, if they'd triumphed, or cleared away by some disposal team. She supposed that it was lucky whoever had done it hadn't seen her up on the catwalk. She didn't feel lucky though.

Lightning cracked overhead, momentarily blinding her as its roar echoed in her ears. She shuddered, feeling the chill of the rainwater seeping into her flesh like a sickness. Though she'd waited, the Syndicate hadn't sent anyone to retrieve her in the aftermath of the battle. There were a million things that could have meant, but all she cared about was the fact that help wasn't coming. She was injured. If she stayed there, she'd have bled to death eventually.

One hand carefully cradled her side as she limped onwards, trying to hold the broken ribs in place as best she could. Self-preservation was her highest priority. She needed to find help, but…

 _She was alone_.

The fight seemed to be over. Whichever side had won hadn't stayed amidst the destruction, and no cleanup force appeared to have started removing what was left behind yet. That left her as a lone wanderer amidst the no-man's land, stepping past the bodies of the fallen, and thinking only of how she could avoid joining them.

She'd briefly entertained the idea of picking up a rifle off one of the soldiers for self-defense. Right now, the idea of simply pulling a trigger on someone sounded far easier than mustering up the concentration to ignite them, particularly in this weather.

In the end, she'd decided against it. If she had to retrieve a gun, she'd need to bend over. If she bent over, she might fall. If she fell, she doubted she'd be able to get back up again. The risk wasn't worth the payoff, so she stayed the course. It was the reasonable decision.

She shuffled on, moving painfully slow as she fought to ignore the the jolts of fire lancing through her legs with each step, and the oppressive weight of the rain falling on her head.

Maybe this was punishment. She had killed people. Vague memories had followed her during her time as a contractor of fire and screaming and horrible, biting, terror. She didn't know the people or the places, but she knew she'd taken their lives in one way or another. She also knew on some level that killing was considered wrong, and that the ending of a life was a sin. So maybe, just maybe, she was being punished now.

Her thoughts didn't linger on the subject. Ideas of faith and judgement didn't help her survival. The only thing that mattered was staying alive.

It wasn't long before she reached the edge of the battlefield. She could see it in the distance. Some form of police blockade that ended just at the edge of the chaos. Surely someone would be there. It didn't matter which side. She had no iron-clad loyalties one way or the other, so she would be more than happy to trade information to the Primrose if it came down to that.

Her steps quickened, fresh spikes shooting through her veins as her body cried out in protest. She neared the edge of the sleek, black, van that was blocking the path, avoiding the dead officers scattered about its perimeter, and turned the corner to find-

 _She was alone._

For several long moments, Mai stared out at the empty streets in silence as the rolling thunder mocked her fleeting hope. Of course. The Syndicate would have ensured that any civilians were out of the area when the fighting had begun. Having spectators to the battle would have caused problems. By sheer misfortune, it seemed she'd wandered into a portion that had no surviving perimeter force, and had been abandoned as a result.

Were she human, she might have broken down then and there, falling to the ground in a heap as burning, bitter tears ran down her face. But she was not human. She was a Contractor, and Contractors didn't shed tears. Her survival instincts drove her forwards even as her heart fell to pieces, its jagged shards cutting deep into her chest and making the effort of walking so much more difficult.

Battle-worn concrete turned to sidewalks and pavement. Empty vehicles and broken bodies were replaced by abandoned buildings and vacant street corners. She needed to keep going. To find where the evacuation had taken place. If she found other people, she could get help. That was the only thought that kept her going.

But fate was working against her. Every step brought with it a ragged breath that simply couldn't fill her damaged lungs. Every drop of blood left behind was a precious moment of her life slipping between her fingers. Dizziness had taken hold of her head to the point where it was difficult to keep moving in a straight line. If this kept up…

Mai was forced to stop as a sudden coughing fit overtook her, clinging to a streetlight in order to stay standing as she effectively hacked up her chest cavity. The sharp jolts tore into her throat like iron barbs, bringing with it the metallic tang of blood in her mouth. When the spell subsided, she was left gasping for breath, barely able to hold herself upright against the metal pole.

That was when she saw it. Perhaps it was a trick of the light, or some effect of her deteriorating mind, but out of the corner of her eye she spotted something that stood out from the background. As she turned her head, she could make out the eerie glow of an Observer Spirit that, in defiance of all reason, took on a distinctly human shape. She could only watch, mouth hung half open, as the ghostly creature vanished into a puddle, leaving her uncertain if it had ever been there to begin with.

She wasn't given long to wonder. Out of the shroud and the rain, a powerful sound reached her ears. One that caused her broken chest to tighten.

The sound of footsteps.

She turned her head, squinting into the darkness in the direction it was coming from. As though responding to her wishes, the shadows seemed to peel back, revealing a tall figure dressed in black coming towards her. He didn't seem to notice the rain pouring down on his head, or the way the puddles beneath his feet lapped at his ankles. He strode forwards with a purposeful gait, and his eyes were focused solely on her.

Mai trembled, hardly daring to believe that what she saw was real. In a desperate attempt to call out to the man, she pushed away from the light post and reached out, only to immediately realize what a mistake that was.

Her voice didn't come. Her breathing was so weak that she couldn't make a noise, and as soon as she no longer had the support of the pole to keep her up, her legs buckled beneath her. She tripped forwards, a sound that was half gasp and half wheeze issuing up from her chest as consciousness started to slip from her grasp.

In those final moments, she was vaguely aware of a pair of arms catching her before she hit the ground. After that, everything went dark.

* * *

" _Hold on, it looks like she's coming to."_

Breathing. She was still breathing. Why was that a surprise?

" _Go inform the doctor please. He'll want to know of this."_

Mai shifted, feeling something soft and warm beneath her. Linen sheets. She was laying on a mattress. That wasn't right. She had been out somewhere… hadn't she?

" _Is he here? Good. Good. Come see for yourself."_

With a concerted effort, she managed to force her eyes open, almost instantly regretting it as the overhead lights glared into her retinas. Even so, she kept them open as they adjusted, slowly taking in the sight of a bare, white, ceiling.

"Excuse me, miss…?"

The voices. There were people here. Her head drifted to the side, coming to rest on her pillow as she got a sideways view of the room.

"Oh, wonderful! She's responsive." Exclaimed a rather aged bald man, dressed up in white doctors clothing. "You had us worried for a little while there."

She blinked, slowly, before trying to speak.

"Where am I…?"

Her voice sounded alien to her. Rough and scratchy as it was dragged through a throat that had been coughing up blood the last she recalled.

"Why, you're in the hospital." The doctor replied, walking up to her bedside and offering what she assumed was meant to be a reassuring smile. "A rather gloomy looking gentleman brought you in here a little over a day ago. He said you'd been in an accident near the evacuated zone, and even took the liberty of paying your bill for you."

"Gentle… man…?" Mai repeated, an image of a dark figure drifting forwards in her mind.

"That's right." He confirmed, nodding. "Introduced himself as Li Shengshun. He said he was a friend of your family, and that he'd run into you after hearing an explosion from behind the quarantine area. Do you have any memory of that?"

"Li…" She breathed, feeling a sudden tremor in her body. That name had significance, some half-remembered individual. A kind face with eyes that were far too empty. A time she could hardly recall. "Li-san…"

For an instant, a bright sense of… _something_ burst into her mind at the name, only to quickly fade as her eyes started to drift closed. A fresh wave of exhaustion came over her as her still battered body demanded further time to recover. The doctor seemed to pick up on this as he offered her a small smile instead of questioning her further.

"I can see that you're still recovering." He said. "Don't worry. There will be plenty of time to talk later. For now, just rest and focus on getting better. We'll be here for you when you wake up."

She let out a quiet murmur, her eyelids falling down and blocking off the rest of the world. Her worries and concerns about the past, the present, and the future slipped away as she fell into the welcoming embrace of the hospital bed.

Quietly, Mai drifted off to sleep, dreaming of a time when she'd known what it was to be human.


End file.
